TI Participants' Remarks

Here's what participants have to say:

Teachers who have participated in past Teachers Insitutes have come from almost every state. Their roles have ranged from elementary instruction to university level. Their expertise with radio, electronics and wireless technology has ranged from nil to extensive. Here are some of the comments we have received about their experience with the Teachers Institute:

"We had some major changes at the school over the summer and a set of courses was filled but they had no teacher available. I received a call at the end of August and was asked to take the programming class over. I received enough money to purchase 12 Boe-Bots and 12 arduinos. The course was scheduled for C and Java-- has been adapted to PBasic/C/Java. It's been three weeks and I'm still keeping my head above water. I couldn't have done this without the [TI] training."

"...the agenda was jam-packed with ideas and technical information to assist teachers in engaging students in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) curriculum. The entire week was very stimulating as we participated in numerous hands-on activities, including the live contacts via amateur satellites and the building and programming of model robots."

"We had a very knowledgeable instructor who could put the material on a level for all to understand. He also had a plethora of applications for all of the content we were learning."

"Good combination integrating hardware and software. I like the oscilloscope to show the sine waves in real life form which will help my trig class. The robotics will be used to reinforce mathematical concepts and to determine what kind of function formulas to use... The hands-on experience with all of this equipment was great!"

“The institute really helped by giving us material resources … and most importantly by giving me the confidence to teach topics I previously felt unable to teach.”

“I am using the information on lightning and the atmosphere for wave propagation and satellite discussion… it is always nice to bring in real life applications to bring knowledge/science to life.”

"The workshop...provided both the knowledge and a cost effective way to...implement electronics, robotics, and radio into my physics classroom."

“I had attempted to use the basic stamps in the past (by purchasing units with my own funds), the Institute gave me the “ammunition” to show the benefits to students and obtain some funding for the classroom. I even found that I returned to school with a new and energized interest in expanding my course offerings.”

“I have gained many new insights on how to use electronics/robotics/and wireless technology in my curriculum. I believe that my students (7th grade) will be fascinated by this technology. It will give many of them the “gee-whiz” moment that could spark a lifelong interest.”

"This is an excellent course with tremendous possibilities for standards based application in math, science and engineering classrooms... I was blown away with how much we covered and how much more I still wanted to investigate that we did not have time for! I am so excited to now take this material and create projects that align to my units so that my sometimes dry math topics become interesting, relevant and hands-on."

"My primary training is as an electrical engineer and a computer scientist. I already hold an extra-class license and have a very solid grounding in radio theory and practice. One would think that I might not get a lot out of this class. Nothing could be further from the truth. I found the TI class to be extremely useful, educational, fun, and motivating. Quite frankly, it changed my approach to teaching science at our school. (I teach 4th-8th grade science at a private Montessori School.) The approach was interesting, well organized, and presented me with tools I didn't know existed. I cannot recommend this class enough...you absolutely, positively *MUST* apply and attend if the opportunity arises.”

“This was a wonderful opportunity to work with colleagues who are excited by learning.”

“Incredible resources, quick and in-depth intro into electronics.”

“The content presented at the TI has given great insight into the way that many of the benchmark items can be taught in the classroom.”

"I had several goals in taking this course. One was to gain more comfort in teaching others about basic electronics and radio fundamentals. Another was to learn about approaches to teaching teachers about technology. A third was to get ideas about how we can work with middle and high school students at the Field Station, where I serve as director. In all these areas this class was superb!”

“This is one of the most useful workshops/courses that I have had the pleasure of attending in my 30 years of teaching in public education.”

"I have been an educator for 10 years and I have attended many workshops, symposiums and training classes. This has been the most dynamic, enthusiastic hands-on and most applicable to career technical education for me!"

"This was the best institute that I have attended in 27 years of teaching... It was the kind of experience that changed the way I teach."